Update: Xiaomi's response to Medianama: We have concluded our investigation on this topic — the device Bluebox obtained is 100% proven to be a counterfeit product purchased through an unofficial channel on the streets in China. It is therefore not an original Xiaomi product and it is not running official Xiaomi software, as Bluebox has also confirmed in their updated blog post. 1) Hardware: Xiaomi hardware experts have looked at the internal device photos provided to us by Bluebox and confirmed that the physical hardware is markedly different from our original Mi 4. 2) IMEI number: Xiaomi after-sales team has confirmed that the IMEI on the device from Bluebox is a cloned IMEI number which has been previously used on other counterfeit Xiaomi devices in China. 3) Software: Xiaomi MIUI team has confirmed that the software installed on the device from Bluebox is not an official Xiaomi MIUI build as our devices do not come rooted and do not have any malware pre-installed. As this device is not an original Xiaomi product, and not running an official Xiaomi MIUI software build, Bluebox’s findings are completely inaccurate and not representative of Xiaomi devices. We believe Bluebox jumped to a conclusion too quickly without a fully comprehensive investigation (for example, they did not initially follow our published hardware verification process correctly due to language barrier) and their attempts to contact Xiaomi were inadequate, considering the severity of their accusations. The company also mentioned that it "takes all necessary measures to crack down…
